San Rafael, CA – The County of Marin is preparing its next annual budget and will hold three days of informational planning sessions starting Monday, March 27, to receive feedback. The County encourages the public to provide general comments about the budget at 9 a.m. Monday either in-person or online.
The informational sessions before the Marin County Board of Supervisors will include updates concerning top community priorities, department workplans, and emerging budget issues. Over the three-day workshop, County staff will provide updates on cross-departmental initiatives such as racial equity, climate change, affordable housing, and homelessness.
In June 2022, the Board adopted a $716 million budget for the 2022-23 fiscal year. The current year budget includes new ongoing funding for high priority programs such as homelessness, sea level rise, emergency preparedness, and countywide communications. In addition, over $25 million of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars were earmarked for permanent supportive housing, the revitalization of Golden Gate Village in Marin City, the establishment of a Southern Marin hub for County services, improvements to fire department facilities, and projects to help adapt to sea level rise.
Budget Director Josh Swedberg said no cuts to public services are expected in the 2023-24 budget. However, given the state budget shortfall, there are concerns about the reliability of revenues that fund vital safety net services over the next few years. The final fiscal year 2023-2024 Proposed Budget will be brought before the Board for consideration in June.
In addition, to help inform future priorities, the County will conduct a community survey to ask residents about their service priorities. The survey will have questions about general quality of life, local policies, demographics, and the rating of local government services. Anyone may participate in an online survey, and a randomly selected group will be contacted to participate to assure feedback is received from a representative cross-section of the population.
The County is also launching a process known as participatory budgeting in which community members rather than elected officials decide how to spend part of the County’s budget. There is $2.5 million allotted to support racial equity initiatives in our underserved communities.
Residents may watch the proceedings online or watch on Comcast Channel 27. The public is invited to offer comments during the workshops (participation instructions are online); the best time will be at the start of the Monday session. The County’s budget overview webpage allows residents to view interactive charts and graphs through the budget dashboard.
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All public meetings and events sponsored or conducted by the County of Marin are held at accessible sites. If you are a person with a disability and require information or materials in alternative formats – or if you require accommodation to participate in a county program, service or activity – please contact department staff by email or at (415) 473-7331 or (415) 473-4381 (voice/TTY).